Richard Borgens, Riyi Shi, and Youngnam Cho at the Center for Paralysis Research at the Purdue School of Veterinary Medicine discovered a way to repair spinal cord damage in paralyzed guinea pigs. What about spinal injuries incurred during lobster knife fights? Yes, even those. They used chitosan converted from a sugar found in abundance in crustacean shells. When applied to the damaged spinal cord the chitosan repaired damaged nerve cell membranes. 30 minutes after the the chitosan injection, nerve signals from the guinea pig’s hind leg were able to reach the brain.

As cool as all that is, I still have one observation: guinea pigs with spinal paralysis? That’s the saddest thing ever. No, wait, this is the saddest thing ever. Awwww, he misses his ocean family.